Chapter 22 : Banana Milk and Barks

“A new face, huh?” 

“Whoa, how did a rookie end up in that crowd?” 

“These shameless people. Not one of them warned him.” 

Caught among the seasoned drinkers, the clueless newbie looked like a chick lost in a den of wolves, earning sympathetic glances from the onlookers. 

“Gulp, gulp! Look at him go!” 

“Young livers really are something else, aren’t they?” 

The veterans watched the rookie, who claimed it was his first time drinking, with affectionate amusement, their eyes twinkling as he bravely took on the liquor. 

“But… it’s so bitter!” 

“Don’t worry, don’t worry! If it’s too bitter, just have some snacks. Here, try this. Good, right?” 

“Yup!” 

“Hahaha!” 

Most young folks these days shy away from adults, keeping their distance, but this kid plopped down beside them, charming them with his unguarded playfulness.

It was impossible not to find him adorable. 

“Hey, the pork neck here is amazing. Does our little maknae like pork neck?” 

“I love all meat!” 

“His taste matches ours perfectly. Five more servings of pork neck, please!” 

“Hurry up and bring more meat! The kid loves it!” 

From a corner of the room, someone observed the scene quietly. 

“Man, sticking Donghyeok in that group is just cruel, isn’t it?” 

Yongseok, who wasn’t exactly a lightweight himself but still hesitated to join that boisterous crew, felt a pang of pity seeing Hyunjae caught in their midst. 

“He said it’s his first time drinking, and now he’s in deep.” 

“Look at him, his eyes are already glazed over.” 

“That’s the guy playing Donghyeok, right? He was pretty good at the read-through.” 

At the table where the lead actors and the director sat, Hyunjae naturally became the topic of conversation. 

“He’s solid, our Hyunjae.” 

“You’d expect a newbie to be nervous, but he didn’t show a hint of it.” 

Jaehoon remembered his own first script reading, his voice trembling like a goat’s, but Hyunjae had performed with a confidence that stood out, effortlessly showcasing his talent. 

“When I first saw Hyunjae, guess who came to mind?” 

“Who?” 

“Jaehyun.” 

Yongseok recalled how, during Hyunjae’s audition, the way he read the script had instantly reminded him of Jaehyun. 

“Jaehyun hyung?” 

“Yeah, I didn’t say anything because I didn’t want to stir things up, but something about him just screamed Jaehyun.” 

“Really?” 

Jaehoon tried to picture Jaehyun as he was in life, but he couldn’t quite see any physical resemblance to Hyunjae. 

“I don’t really see it.” 

“Just watch him act.” 

To Yongseok, Jaehyun had been the quintessential actor—someone who understood and dissected a role more deeply than even the director, then brought it to life with breathtaking precision.

He was born to act, no exaggeration. 

It’s rare to see someone like that twice in a lifetime. 

And yet, Yongseok had glimpsed that same spark in Hyunjae’s performance. 

“It’s like… their acting styles are similar, you know?” 

“Similar styles? Now I’m curious.” 

Yongseok wasn’t one to throw around empty praise, so Jaehoon’s interest in Hyunjae’s acting piqued. 

“It’s fleeting, but when he acts, there’s this moment where Jaehyun flashes through my mind, and I think, ‘This kid’s the real deal.’” 

Yongseok continued to heap praise on Hyunjae, and Jaehoon listened with a smile.

But not everyone was pleased.

From another corner, someone glared at the scene, eyes brimming with resentment. 

“Ugh, this is infuriating.” 

Gongjun was seething, every detail of the gathering rubbing him the wrong way.

Hyunjae, drinking among the old-timers, being pitied yet adored by the staff, and now the director wouldn’t stop singing his praises. 

Why is he getting all this attention? 

It should’ve been Gongjun basking in the spotlight as the beloved maknae, earning the director’s admiration. 

Even here, he’s getting in my way. 

From the start, Gongjun had seen Hyunjae as bad news, but he hadn’t expected him to be this much of an obstacle. 

“Hey, take it easy on the drinks. Your image is already shaky—don’t go causing a scene now.” 

Shaky image?

It’s my role to begin with, what’s there to worry about? 

His manager’s words stung, but starting a fight wouldn’t do any good, so Gongjun bit his tongue. 

“I was about to stop anyway.” 

“Don’t just sit here alone. Go pour a drink for the seniors and the director, make some rounds.” 

“Ugh… fine.” 

Reluctantly, Gongjun grabbed his glass and headed toward the table where Jaehoon and the director sat. 

“Director—” 

“Hey, where’s our maknae?!” 

Just as Gongjun opened his mouth, a loud shout erupted from the drinkers’ table, cutting him off. 

“Huh? Where’d he go?” 

“He bolted!” 

“Good thing he escaped when he did.” 

The rowdy group’s drunken commotion drew every eye in the room to Hyunjae, who had apparently vanished. 

“I knew he’d run.” 

“Haha, he held out longer than I expected!” 

“He’s not passed out on the street somewhere, is he?” 

“I’ll take a walk and check around.” 

Jaehoon pulled his cap low and stood up.

Gongjun’s plan to smoothly greet the director and chat with Jaehoon crumbled in an instant. 

“Alright, find the kid if he’s out there.” 

“Director, you’re not just gonna stick to that table all night, are you?” 

“Come on, since when did you start calling me old?” 

Yongseok laughed and moved to another table at their beckoning, leaving Gongjun standing alone like a forgotten duck egg in the middle of the Nakdong River.

Other actors were still around, but to him, they might as well have been invisible. 

“Ugh, how can a celebrity have this little presence?” 

He couldn’t even manage to make a good impression, missing his chance by hesitating.

To his manager, Gongjun looked utterly pathetic. 

“Forget it. Just head home early tonight. Focus on preparing for the shoot.” 

That dismissive look in his manager’s eyes—Gongjun had never liked him from the start. 

God, this is so annoying. 

He’d heard the manager had opposed signing him, saying he wasn’t good enough.

What does a manager know about acting? 

If this project made him a star, Gongjun was determined to fire his manager first thing. 

“Fine.” 

For now, he kept his feelings hidden, but he was certain it wouldn’t be long before he could act on them. 

Meanwhile, Jaehoon stepped outside and headed toward a nearby park. 

Haa. 

Truth be told, looking for Hyunjae was just an excuse.

He’d simply felt stifled and needed some air. 

“Hahaha! That’s hilarious!” 

“Shh, keep it down! I was mortified back there.” 

A group of women in their twenties walked past, and Jaehoon lowered his head, worried they might recognize him. 

“Man, that was the funniest thing this year.” 

But they were too engrossed in their conversation to notice him. 

“Hey, wait.” 

Just when he thought he’d slipped by, one of them called out, and Jaehoon quickly turned his face away. 

“What?” 

“Look… what’s that?” 

To his relief, they weren’t looking at him but at something else, their voices tinged with surprise.

Curious, Jaehoon followed their gaze. 

What’s going on? 

There, sitting on the ground, was a figure surrounded by dogs. 

No way. 

For some reason, the back of that head looked oddly familiar. 

“Hey, you guys better treat your owners right. Woof! Woof!” 

“And you! Listen to your hyung! Earning money for your food isn’t easy, you know.” 

Hyunjae was sprawled on the pavement, locked in a serious conversation with the dogs, who sat around him as if they understood every word, barking in response. 

“What’s he doing over there?” 

Jaehoon had assumed Hyunjae might be passed out in a bathroom or had stumbled home, not this.

And what was with all the dogs? 

“My pup only eats meat.” 

“That’s no good! Picky eating is bad.” 

Whine, whine. 

Five steps away, the dogs’ owners stood, chuckling and adding their own comments to the bizarre scene. 

“You guys are living your best lives right now!” 

“Hoho, this kid is adorable.” 

Jaehoon could hardly believe his eyes.

Talking to dogs like this was the kind of drunken nonsense that would make any manager drag him away in embarrassment. 

“My dog doesn’t usually like people, but he seems to like this kid.” 

“Right? His responses are so funny!” 

“Hey, kid, time to head home!” 

The fun was over, and with the hour growing late, the owner of a Bichon Frise shook Hyunjae’s shoulder. 

“Oh, right!” 

At the mention of home, Hyunjae shot to his feet. 

“Home! Gotta go home. You guys head home too, okay? Listen to your owners. Let’s say hi next time we meet. Byeee!” 

As Hyunjae waved, the dogs, as if on cue, stood up in unison. 

“Do they actually understand him?” 

“That’s wild.” 

The owners marveled at their dogs’ synchronized reaction but chalked it up to coincidence, laughing as they led their pets away. 

“See ya! I gotta go home too… but, uh, where am I supposed to go?” 

Left alone, Hyunjae looked around, clearly lost, with no memory of where he’d come from. 

Oh, come on. 

Jaehoon couldn’t just leave the kid wandering like a lost puppy.

He approached. 

“Hey…” 

“Hey!” 

Hyunjae’s face lit up as if he recognized Jaehoon instantly. 

“Friend!” 

Or not. 

In Hyunjae’s drunken, dog-like brain, relationships were simple: if you were a friend of his owner, you were his friend too. 

“Friend? What?” 

The sudden declaration caught Jaehoon off guard. This kid was clearly on another planet. 

“Why didn’t you come visit me?” 

Hyunjae, completely forgetting that Jaehoon had been away in the military, was just sulking that his “friend” hadn’t dropped by. 

“Visit you?” 

“Yeah!” 

His behavior was absurd, but Jaehoon figured Hyunjae had mistaken him for someone else. 

He’s gonna be kicking himself tomorrow. 

“Just follow me quietly.” 

To Jaehoon’s relief, Hyunjae didn’t resist and trailed behind him obediently, not making a fuss despite his drunken state. 

“But… didn’t you used to be taller? Why’re you so small now?” 

“What?” 

“It’s sad. They say people shrink when they get old. Is that why?” 

Hyunjae, still stuck in his dog-brain logic, wasn’t thinking about his own transformation into a human but instead recalled Jaehoon’s appearance from his dog days. 

What is this kid even saying? 

Jaehoon was dumbfounded.

This rookie was dissing him, calling him old and short? 

“You gotta live a long time, okay?” 

But Hyunjae’s teary, earnest expression softened Jaehoon, who gave a small nod. 

“Yeah, yeah, I’ll live forever. Just keep it down and let’s go.” 

“Wait a sec!” 

Hyunjae suddenly darted into a convenience store, and for a fleeting moment, Jaehoon considered abandoning him.

But his soft heart wouldn’t let him. 

“Here!” 

Hyunjae returned and thrust a bottle of banana milk into Jaehoon’s hands. 

“Your favorite. I kept asking for a sip, but you were so stingy, always drinking it alone.” 

Banana milk was indeed Jaehoon’s go-to drink when he had alcohol. 

“You asked me for this? When?” 

Before Jaehoon could finish, a middle-aged man shouted from a distance and charged over, delivering a swift smack to Hyunjae’s back. 

“Ow!” 

Hyunjae yelped, writhing from the sting that pierced through his thin shirt. 

“Look at you, drinking like you know what you’re doing.” 

Kyungho, his cheeks flushed from drinking, looked at Hyunjae’s glassy eyes with exasperation.

He’d come out worried because Hyunjae said it was his first time drinking, only to find him completely wasted. 

“It wasn’t my idea to drink…” 

“Oh, now you’re making excuses? Sorry about this, I’m his guardian.” 

“Oh, sure.” 

Kyungho’s natural tug on Hyunjae’s ear made it clear they knew each other well. 

“Thanks for looking after this idiot. I’ll take him from here.” 

Handing over a business card to confirm his identity, Kyungho bowed to Jaehoon and grabbed Hyunjae by the scruff of his neck. 

“Come on quietly, unless you want to sleep in a kennel.” 

“Yessir.” 

Despite Kyungho being a good head shorter than Hyunjae, the scene looked oddly fitting, and Hyunjae followed without protest, like a naughty puppy being led away by its owner. 

“But… how did he know?” 

Left alone, Jaehoon stared at the banana milk in his hand, wondering.